Category: Freehand

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Autumn Floral (Inspired by Christabell Nails)

Hello loves & happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is having a good start to their week (& this brand new month!) Today I’m super excited to share a manicure I recently did inspired by one of my OG Nail inspirations circa 2013-2016: Christabell Nails.

I was browsing Pinterest while trying to figure out what I wanted to paint on my nails, when I clicked over to Youtube & saw my Subscriptions & remembered Christabell! After a little scrolling, I stumbled upon her Autumn Floral Nails Tutorial , & knew I needed to recreate it on my nails immediately! It is such a pretty, but unique, design & I thought it would be a perfect September design.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Strengthner
  • Top Coat: Sinful Colors Power Paint Top Coat + Essie Speed Setter
  • Essie Silk Water Colours No Shrinking Violet
  • Essie The A-Bliss
  • Essie Blank Page
  • NailStuff 7mm Liner Brush
  • NailStuff Dotting Tool Trio (larger size)

Aren’t these fun? It definitely was a time consuming manicure to do, especially where I painted all 10 of my fingers. But I think it turned out so unique & fun. My strokes were a little messy, but I think that adds to the whole look.

Definitely a striking manicure that came together perfectly, & was absolutely worth the time it took to do!

What do you think of this design? Do you like to go back to old nail inspo, & reinsure yourself again? I feel like I might started doing it again — nail artists like pshiit_polish (her instagram is now private, but a lot of old manicures are on Pinterest!), The Nailasaurus & Lucys Stash. Maybe I’m feeling nostalgic to the olden nails of nail blogging, but it’s fun to take a trip down nail polish lane, & be inspired by what could be considered retro nail trends.

Let me know your thoughts, & where you get your nail inspo from!

❤︎

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Vivid Stained Glass Accent Nails 💎

Hello lovelies & happy Thursday! I hope everyone has had a peaceful week so far. I know we’ve had some super sad celebrity deaths this week (RIP Dolly & Tim Curry). This year has just been brutal when it comes to icons of my childhood.

But I’m not here for sad vibes, & I’m always hoping to perk up someone’s day with some pretty nails so let’s get into it! I’ve really been trying to do some new things lately… or old things I haven’t done in a hot minute. Stained glass nails are definitely in the latter category, & I’m excited to share my latest version because I feel like these are the closest to real, true stained glass.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Strengthner
  • Top Coat: Sinful Colors Power Paint Top Coat + Essie Speed Setter
  • OPI Black Cherry Chutney
  • OPI Cyber Cherry On Top
  • OPI Y2Slay
  • OPI My Gecko Does Tricks
  • Essie Ballet Slippers
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri Ghouls Night Out
  • NailStuff.ca 11mm Mermaid Tail Liner Brush

I really love these metallic shimmer nail polishes give the effect of glass, like in a stained glass window. After I started, I realized I should have tried to do some kind of design like a heart, or a flower, but I guess I’ll have to say that for next time.

But these colours look so, so beautiful together. They’re bright & colourful, which plays off well with the darkness of OPI Black Cherry Chutney. A fun look to wear at this end of Summer season. Also staring at these made me excited for more nail art looks to come — especially as we enter my favourite time of the year — the ‘Ber months! It’s the best time of year for fun nail art looks, so I’m already saving a million ideas to give a try.

What do you think about my stained glass nails? Would you look at these & know exactly what the inspiration was? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below, & what nail art trend or design you’re excited to try for Fall (I’m definitely pumped to do anything pumpkin themed. They’re one of my favourite things to paint!)

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70s Groovy Autumn Vibes 🍂✨

Hello lovelies & happy Monday. It is rainy, & gloomy, & humid outside, & I’m really not enjoying it. It has me dreaming of better days — aka, Autumn. I did my best, I tried my hardest, but honestly… I just love Fall. I love everything about Fall, & I can’t wait for it to be here! I want knee high boots, tights, & plaid skirts, okay?

So I felt like some fun Autumn-esque toned nails were exactly what I needed.

I also had a horrendous break on my middle finger while opening a bin of coffee beans at work, so a bit snip was in order. But just because my nails are super duper short, doesn’t mean they can’t be cute!

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Strengthner
  • Top Coat: Sinful Colors Power Paint Top Coat + Essie Speed Setter
  • Essie Bare With Me
  • Essie Home After 8
  • Essie Frilly Lillies
  • Essie Cliffhanger
  • Essie Willow in the Wind
  • NailStuff 11mm Mermaid Tail Liner Brush

I love this colour combination together too. I picked out my colours before I knew what kind of design I was going to do, but it came together so fun! The colours work together so beautifully, & it is giving both 70s wallpaper vibes, & early Autumn.

My only gripe is a I wish I had mixed up my swirls & my flowers better so they alternated, but it’s such a small thing it doesn’t take away from how fun these look.

What do you think of this Autumn inspired look, featuring my brand new super shorties? Personally I’m really happy with how these turned out — & especially the colour combination. It’s giving just enough Fall vibes to keep this girl going until she gets her hands on her very first PSL.

Happy Tuesday!

♥︎

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Lavender & Gold Romantic Celestial Nails ✨🌙

Hello lovelies & happy Friday! The weekend is upon us… unless of course, you’re like me, & working the entire weekend.

Today though, I’m excited because I feel like I created one of the prettiest nail designs I’ve done in absolute ages. Soft, & romantic… I’m kind of (very) in love. I also feel like this is kind of a different look for me, but the vibe reminds me a bit of a pair of press on nails I tried out a few years ago that I loved.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Strengthner
  • Top Coat: Sinful Colors Power Paint Top Coat + Essie Speed Setter
  • Joe Fresh Gel Look Mauve-ulous
  • Revlon Daydreamer
  • Joe Fresh Gold Rush
  • Essie Get Your Groove On
  • Icing store nail stickers — the stars
  • NailStuff Mermaid Tail Brush — 7mm liner brush

I feel like I perfectly colour matched these nail stickers from Icing I’ve had in my stash for a good… 7 years, to the freehand lines & crescent moon I pained. They look so good together! I was also going to try & add some rhinestones to this look, but it was getting late, & I was so scared of messing up what I had already painted, so I kept them as it.

But aren’t they giving a fun celestial vibe? I was inspired by a few manicures I saw on Pinterest, & these stickers as well. So much so, that when I was at Dollarama, & saw a nail sticker kit with similar stickers, I had to buy it. I’m already planning on a similar vibe, with a mix of dark & light purples, closer to Halloween.

So what do you think of this celestial nail design? Do you just love the pattern & colour combo. I’m kind of obsessed with the shift on Revlon Daydreamer. It is absolutely dreamy.

Let me know what you think about this look, & let me know what kind of nail vibe you’d like to see in the future.

☼ ☽

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Nude & Gold Herringbone Nails

Hello lovelies & happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is having the best start to their week.

The weather has made a serious shift, from hot humid & sunny to rainy & wet. But the temperatures are coming down, & I can feel the pumpkin spice lattes calling. Seriously, I may just have to start my shift off at work tomorrow with one!

But I’m trying my hardest not to go full Autumn vibes on my nails, & I think this look is another good transitional design. We’re not dark & moody, but the nude & gold combo is definitely giving end of the Summer feelings. I feel like it’s been literal years since I last created a herringbone design like this, so I definitely felt rusty, but the final result turned out beautifully.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Strengthner
  • Top Coat: Sinful Colors Power Paint Top Coat + Essie Speed Setter
  • Essie Gel Couture Princess Charming
  • Essie Leggy Legend
  • Art Club Striper in Black
  • Small dotting tool

Were my lines the easiest to draw? Absolutely not. Am I super proud of how they look? Absolutely. These felt so chic to wear, & I truly forgot how much I adore a herringbone pattern nail art look.

What do you think of this nail art look? Do you enjoy simple but striking nail art designs like this? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below, & any other nail art designs you’d like to see me create!

Happy Tuesday!

♥︎